The grades are in

Chance (with 2 new implants) races his brother up the stairs.

To keep Chance caught up amidst the implant failure and surgery, his dad and I feel a bit like we are back in school.

This is mostly because of two things:  Chance began attending a school this year that expects a lot out of the students and Chance has missed quite a bit of class time.  And our little Chance is a perfectionist.  He wants to do it right.

Being a perfectionist is not a bad thing for Chance to be.  He has a natural drive to succeed.  He also gets stressed if he doesn't feel like he can do something right.

For instance, he came home the first week of school and said,"I only got a 92 percent on my math test!"
Then he flopped on the ground and  moaned,"I'm not going to get a 4.0 in this school."

O.K. then. It is important to note that unknown to Chance, this test ended up being a placement test to figure out what the students already knew and where they were in their knowledge of math.

We as his parents have not pushed Chance for perfection.  We were happy with the 92 percent actually. Good heavens, the boy is already taking 8th grade math in 7th grade, we as his parents are fine with his performance. Chance actually started out in 8th grade honors math, but due to the amount of school he missed due to surgery and appointments related to the surgery and the fact that his hearing was fluctuating, he was having tons of math homework to do and catch up on.  We figured he didn't need that much pressure while he was dealing with the implant failure, so he went into regular math 8.  Still a year ahead, but with some breathing room.  Math is one subject you don't want to get behind in.

Chance wants to do his best in all he does though and it bothers him to think that he won't be getting the grades he wants due to his implant surgery.  Therefore, Chance's dad and I have been staying up late and spending many hours working with him to help stay caught up.  Chance has some great teachers too, that have let him turn things in a little late when he has missed school. The school is usually really strict on turning in late homework assignments.

Chance has been working his little tail off to keep his grades up while losing hearing, gaining hearing again and getting used to a new implant.

He is my hero.

His drive to succeed seems to have paid off. .  Term grades just came out and Chance is a straight A student. In several classes he has 103-104 percent of possible points. He was very thorough in his work, usually got full points and then did extra credit.

He is happy.  We are happy.  And Chance can hear out of two ears now.

Life is good.

Dr. Shelton's bedside manner

Chance's surgeon, while examining the scar on Chance's left side  from the original implant surgery, remarked that the scar was a little wide and had the nurse note that during the second surgery, they would narrow that scar.

Chance's scar after the first surgery

The scar may not seem like a big deal, it is not overly noticeable, but the fact that the surgeon was involved enough to care about the scar width spoke volumes to me.

This is a surgeon who cares not just about getting the job done, but the small things that may affect the patient.

Chance being a boy and all, means that he does not have long hair to cover his scars or implants.  I have seen girls with implants from the time they are tiny with hair that cascaded down and covers the implants so that you barely know they are there.

Chance's new scar (still fresh and healing)

Chance's implants are right out in the open, easily seen and noticeable.  A surgeon with a bedside manner that cares about such little things,  builds confidence that he will also be cognizant of the bigger things during surgery.

Dr. Shelton has been cognizant and has taken great care to line up the spots on the back of Chance's head where the magnets are attached.  We have had many comments through the years about how perfectly Chance's implants line up on the back his head.  The implants may not need to be perfectly aligned to function the way they need to, but it is nice to have someone care so much about the aesthetics.  Because the aesthetics are important to the recipient who will have these implants in place for the rest of their lives.

What perfect alignment looks like

A big thank you to Dr. Shelton, his skill in what he does, and his caring for the patient (and their mother) to get even the tiniest details right. Our family will be forever blessed by his talent and caring.

The unwinding

Once again we got to unwind Chance's implant bandages here in the comfort of our own home.  The first time we were unexpectedly made aware that the bandages were sticking to the wound and Chance's dad and I switched our roles at that point:  I started filming while his dad dealt with the wound:)

Chance is ready to unwind

You are sent home with a big old mummy wrap around your child's head, and then they tell you to take it off yourselves.

That is all well and good, but the first time we were unprepared for the fact that the bandages were sticking to the wound through blood.  I was doing the unwrapping at the time and Chance's dad was filming as we stood in the bathroom facing the mirror. Neither one of us was real excited to take the bandages off that were sticking. 

What if it ripped something open?

That is when we switched places and Chance's dad started unwinding the wound while I filmed:)

Getting up close and personal

It was explicitly written in our marriage vow that Chance's dad take care of all potentially painful parental duties and dead things.  He doesn't remember that part, but I do.
I wasn't sick or freaked out by the wound, I had tugged at the bandage a little and it was really stuck on there, and I was worried about doing damage.

Chance was watching this whole process in the mirror, so we didn't want to freak him out or hurt him.

So, now that it is time number three,  we just left those little sticky bandages that were stuck to the wound by blood on until they came off themselves a few days later.  

Those tiny bloody bandages underneath will just come
off when they are good and ready:)

Chance was fine with that, we were fine with that and we just let nature take it's course

We've learned a thing or two over time:)

Back to 2 Ears Again!

We took the camera with us when Chance's 3rd implant was turned on just like we did with the first and second implants.

With the first two, we wanted to capture Chance's reaction to hearing with an implant for the first time.

We were not disappointed as Chance's facial expressions and audible response conveyed his surprise, delight and wonder at hearing through an implant for the first time.

We did not expect the extreme response with the third activation, that we got with the first two implants.   Chance had only been not hearing at all on the one side for a few weeks, although his hearing was greatly diminished by the failing implant.

We wondered if we would get much of a response at all when the 3rd implant was activated.  Chance delighted us with a wide eyed response of wonder when the implant was turned on.

The audiologist asked if his voice sounded metallic or like a woman's voice to Chance.  Then he noted that a child a few weeks ago commented that the audiologist's voice sounded like he had been sucking helium.
Chance said,"That's it!  That is what your voice sounds like!"

So here is Chance, responding to hearing from implant number three.......

Two ears, three surgeries

Chance: A little nervous, a little excited

The surgery was a rousing success.  It took about 3 hours which we were not expecting because we figured that the drilling into the skull had already been done during the first implantation.  The surgeon explained that though that made sense, a second surgery actually ended up taking the same amount of time if not a little bit more due to scar tissue etc.

It was interesting to see how Chance's dad and I have evolved over the years with these surgeries.
This third surgery found us taking a walk about around the University of Utah Hospital grounds, where the surgery took place, after eating breakfast.  It was a beautiful day and we had given our cell phone number to the front desk right after Chance went into surgery and they told us they would call us when Chance was done with surgery or if they needed us for any reason.  After our walk about around the University, we sat out in the balcony section of the parents waiting area.  We were completely calm, we were excited for Chance to be getting a second implant that would give him what he needs and we sat reading and waiting until Chance was out of surgery and we were called back to join him.

During the first one, we were a little nervous and tended to stay close to the parents waiting room.  We would wonder aloud where we thought he was in the surgery process, was the implant seated yet?  Was he responding well?  There was a level of  nervous/excitement because we did not know what exactly to expect.  Was Chance going to respond well to being implanted?  How much better would he be able to hear?  How big would the wound be and how much of a difference were we going to see between hearing aids and implant hearing?

As the anesthetic kicked in, Chance said, slurring his speech:
"Take a picture of my aaarrrmmm...."

Then after all of that anticipation, we had to wait another 4 weeks to turn the implant on to find out what would happen.

The second surgery found us more familiar with the process, but it had been a long decision for me to make and I spent a lot of time studying and praying and calling other parents with bilateral kids and seeing if they really saw that much of a difference and if they thought it was worth it.

There was a special moment during that second surgery while walking through a little garden on the hospital grounds that I had a sweet confirmation that the second implant was the right decsion.  I had been wondering about how much the second implant would impact Chance's life and if it would make that much of a difference.  An incredible feeling of excitement went through me strong enough to make me stop and take notice.  I suddenly knew that this second implant would open a new world to Chance and I was excited for him and what lay ahead in his life.

That feeling of confirmation has been felt for 6 years now.  The second implant truly has given Chance advantages in hearing that we could not have anticipated when we were making the decision to implant both ears.  Now that we have had a period of time without that second implant, we have seen so many advantages that Chance gets by having two.  We lived with one implant for two weeks and we noticed a big difference.  I asked Chance if he noticed a difference and he said, 'Ya!" in a tone that added a, "Oh man have I ever!"

Recovery after surgery, waiting for the OK to go home.

I asked Chance if he was hearing everything that he needed to in school and he told me that he wasn't.  I reminded him that he needed to sit so that his working implant was facing the teacher and sit near the front.
When I dropped Chance off at school one day, I told him a few times when kids had said "hi" to him because he kept walking and hadn't noticed.

Chance has had more questions about what is going on in class while wearing only one implant and at home, we have had more questions about what is going on around him as well.
We love that second implant. It makes a big difference.
Thankfully, we only had to wait two weeks instead of four to get this one turned on. 

Two really is better than one...

I have decided to pay attention to what the differences are in Chance's hearing now that one of the implants is not functioning at full capacity.

We don't know exactly what he is hearing out of that left ear, but we do know it is not functioning at full capacity.

Chance says he notices the loss particulary when he listens to his ipod.  He says the left ear is really quiet and isn't hearing much at all.  Listening to an i pod would be a prime opportunity to experience how well your ears are working.  I know we had a couple sets of headphones bouncing around the house for a while and in one set the left earbud was broken.  I picked up that pair to use a few times not realizing one side was broken.  It annoyed me to only have one side working.  Sure, I could hear fine out of the right side, but the music quality and sound was so much better when both earbuds contributed to the sound.  I didn't like to use them and ended up throwing them away.

Chance has started a new school which is quite intense and expects a lot out of the kids.  This is Chance's first year attending so he has to listen and pay attention to the rules and expectations.  He is having to put more effort into hearing what is going on in class and since the environment is new,  he can not rely on what he already knows.  All of teachers are new, the school building is new and all of the students are new to him.

Chance is doing well, though he has been experiencing some anxiety and I can tell that he is making great strides to try and understand and catch everything.  He came home one day and told me that he was only able to complete 3/4 of an assignment in one class and then he said,"I want to get a 4.0 and the teacher would not let me finish the assignment and turn it in later in the day!"

Chance also said that the quizes in class have been hard for him to understand in a few subjects, so we worked out with the special ed teacher that Chance can come in and take quizes in her office if he needs to.

At home, Chance is asking us "what" a lot more often.  He still catches a lot, but both the family and Chance have to claify more often.

I have noticed when we are talking about something that happened at school with his brother or when we are telling a story or recounting an event, Chance asks, "Who? " or  "Now what happened?"  I find I am repeating things much more often.  Just simple things like who is going to the movies or what needs to be done before we can leave the house.

Chance can still hear, and I know that many people have only one implant all of the time.  I have been able to see how having that second implant  adds to and enhances Chance's hearing.  Chance can be more relaxed as he listens with two implants, he doesn't have to work as hard to hear and he just naturally catches more.  Chance also is more bothered by background noise with just one implant.

Chance has been more tired, and I think it has to do with the fact that it is taking more of his brain capacity to hear now.  He fell asleep while doing homework one night which is very unChancelike.  It wasn't just a nodding off either, it was a zoned out dead to the world kind of sleep.

We are the 1%

Chance getting ready for 2nd implant.

About six years ago, we headed up to Salt Lake City for Chance to receive his second implant.  Chance was looking forward to getting an implant for his other ear. 

 Primary Children's Hospital once again worked their kid magic and made Chance feel at home with a surgery buddy who would go into surgery with him  that he dressed and drew a face on.

That second implant was a harder decision for me than getting the first one.  I went through thoughts of how it would affect future technological advances, if it would damage parts of the ear that would later in his life be fixable as technology improved.....I pondered a lot.

Flash forward 6 years and we now have an opportunity to see just what benefits that second implant has given us.

Our particular cochlear implant manufacture has a 99% reliability rate for the last 7 years.  We looked into the failure rates and problems implant companies have as we researched which implant to get.  Cochlear Americas had the least amount of failure rates and their service was superb so we elected to go with a Freedom device which was the newest device at the time.  We could not be happier with the benefit that the implants have brought to Chance over the past 6 years, and feel very blessed.

As luck would have it, we are one of the 1% failure rate.  The internal device in Chance's left ear is not working correctly and it is therefore expedient that we replace it with a new one.
Chance is already scheduled for surgery on the 5th of September. 

Cochlear has been so good to work with both us and our audiologist. They take this failure personally and are working to see that the process of getting another one is as painless as possible.  We have a representative at the company to work with and our audiologist has called and made the neccessary arrangements for surgery.  We are grateful to all who are helping us.

Chance had his regular appointment at the first of the month before school started.  At the time, our audiologist said that the left implant was testing lower than normal but not to be too concerned.  He told us that on a scale from one to ten, we should be at about a 3.  The plan was that we would take Chance back up in September and test again to see how the implant fared.

Our wonderful audiologist who takes impeccable notes, then went back and looked things over.  He came to the realization that Chance's left implant was sliding a little more each time he saw us.  He then took that information to Cochlear and it was evident that the implant was failing and the decision was made to reimplant.

When we got the call from our audiologist, it was a shock out of the blue.  We had not even thought about internal implant malfunction.

In a weird way, it was a relief to me to know there was an actual reason for what I had been experiencing with Chance the past little while.

Chance had not been responding to me like he usually does.  For instance, when I would call him and he was in another part of the house, sometime he claimed he had not heard me at all. 

Then there were times when we were sitting as a family reading scriptures etc. and it would seem as if Chance was not paying attention.  He was with us, but he seemed to be preoccupied or
something.  When I asked him if he was listening, he said,"Yes, but it is hard to hear you." 

There have been sevearl instances like that during the past bit that I have noticed.  I was honestly wondering if Chance was exhibiting behaviors that were coming up as he got older.  I was rather alarmed as I can usually count on Chance to listen and follow through.  I was afraid we might be wandering into some growing pains where he would elect not to listen as well and I was not excited to enter this phase.

Finding out that his impant was failing started to make sense.  And boy does that second implant make a difference in hearing!  Now that I am aware,  I realize just how many times Chance is saying,"What?"  and needs things to be repeated.

I am also seeing how not having hearing on one side affects his daily life.  Since his left ear faces me when he sits up front in the van,  he has a harder time hearing me when I talk to him.  We have to make the van quieter than before so he can hear what is going on, sometimes turning off the air condioning etc. for a minute.

He can still hear with just the one implant, but we are seeing the benefit of a second one working full force.  Chance has to concentrate more to hear things and he does not hear as well.

I noticed the affects of his left ear not hearing as well long before I was aware that there was a mechanical problem.  It is a relief to know that as of now, Chance is not listening to me like he used to because he can't not because he won't.

It is also a relief to know that we are going to get the surgery done and be able to get the left ear up and going again. 

We miss it.